Senate Motion on Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty Welcomed

Submitted by FOEAdmin on Thu, 10/03/2005 - 19:38

March 10, 2005

Friends of the Earth Australia welcomes the motion from Democrat leader Senator Lyn Alison passed today by the Australian Senate, on the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) review conference, scheduled to run from 2 - 27 May at the UN in New York.

According to Friends of the Earth Australia nuclear weapons campaigner John Hallam,

"The upcoming nuclear non proliferation treaty review is going to be crucial. The NPT is threatened by on the one hand, the possibility of nuclear weapons proliferation, already commenced by India, Pakistan, Israel, and the DPRK, and on the other hand by the continued refusal of the established nuclear weapons powers to further advance, or even to acknowledge, that the treaty obliges them to negotiate their own nuclear arsenals down to zero."

"As it is, even today, the US and Russia continue to maintain thousands of strategic warheads on permanent 'Launch on Warning' status, in which they retain the capability to turn much of the planet to toast within less than an hour."

"What has been made clear by Mr El Baradei and others is that what is required is a balanced approach to nuclear nonproliferation, that acknowledges both the importance of ensuring that no more countries acquire nuclear weapons capabilities, and that makes clear progress
toward the established nuclear powers getting rid of theirs. The resolution passed by the Senate urges just such an approach both on the Australian government and on the governments of the entire world."

"We urge the government at the upcoming NPT Review Conference in New York May 2-27, to adopt the approach set out in the Senate resolution".

Contact:

John Hallam
Nuclear Weapons Campaigner,
Ph: (02) 9567 7533

A Seminar on the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty Review Conference is being held in Parliament House Canberra, 9am-3pm Friday 11/3 organised by the Medical Association for the Prevention of War & the Parliamentary Network for Nuclear Disarmament (PNND) Enquires Dimity Hawkins 03-8344-1637, 0431-475-465